Part 16 of an in depth look at the growth of women’s wrestling, from noted ring historian The Phantom of the Ring.

The Phantom of the Ring

Lipstick, Dynamite and Glowworms Part 16

The Rise of the Divas

.

.

.
When we last left Vince McMahon, Jr., he was watching Debbie Miceli happily toss his WWF Women’s Championship belt into the trash during an episode of WCW Monday Nitro, saying that she is renouncing her “Alundra Blayze” gimmick, and going back to being “Madusa.”

McMahon’s reaction was to abandon the women’s title. The WWF was struggling as it was; it didn’t need another division McMahon thought was doing badly in any case. But then something happened that made him change his mind.

.

.

First came Sunny (Tammy Lynn Sytch). She managed the Bodydonnas, a tag-team McMahon thought would really get over. They didn’t, but Sunny did. Hers became the most downloaded image on AOL until that time. She got tremendous heat on television and at appearances. But though he wanted to get her in the ring, there was really no one for her to work with, for there was no women’s division.

McMahon got a better break when he signed Marc Mero, who had previously been in WCW as “Johnny B. Badd,” and was even successfully sold to BET as a Black wrestler (!). Mero came with an extra: his wife, Rena.  Wouldn’t it be great if Rena could get into the business as my valet?

Well, no, not as Mero’s valet . . . at first. An angle was dreamed up wherein she – now renamed Sable – would be the valet for Hunter Hearst Helmsley, with whom Mero was feuding. (Sable made her WWF debut at WrestleMania XII, escorting Triple H to the ring for his match with the returning Ultimate Warrior.)  It seemed, though, that Hunter was abusive to poor Sable. This so moved Marc Mero, that when he happened upon Helmsley abusing Sable backstage during RAW, he chased off Hunter. He then asked Sable to be his manager, to which she naturally agreed.

.

.

She managed Mero until he was injured in 1997 and then took off on her own in the WWF as a personality. Her striking good looks and command of the microphone made her bigger than ever in the WWF. This went on until Mero returned, a changed man. The storyline was changed. Mero was now jealous of Sable’s success and sought to reduce her role. She and Mero then entered into a feud with Goldust and his manager, Luna Vachon. The feud climaxed in a match at WrestleMania XIV that saw Sable super kick Goldust and deliver a “Sable Bomb” (powerbomb) on Luna. She pinned Luna to end the match. More astounding, though, was that the crowd was chanting her name after the match. As a necessary followup, Luna challenged Sable to an Evening Gown Match at the Unforgiven PPV and won when Mero distracted Sable.

On the following episode of RAW, Sable came to the ring and kicked Marc in the groin, followed by a Sable Bomb. Marc then fired her and brought in Jacqueline (Jacqueline Moore) as his new manager.

Sable was on her way to being a wrestler. Only thing was, she had zero experience. But that didn’t matter to McMahon because he had learned the hard way that it is easier to take an attractive woman and make her into a wrestler than have a wrestler who is also an attractive woman. The only problem remained was that of getting someone who could work the right program to get Sable over. A lot of women wrestlers wouldn’t do it.

.

.

McMahon’s problem was answered when Jacqueline Moore was let go by WCW. Moore, who trained at Skandor Akbar’s wrestling school (where she was the only woman) had the necessary experience, ability, and good looks, to get Sable over. Plus she needed a paycheck. McMahon would succeed where GLOW failed, simply because he mixed his newcomers in with experienced talent and also because the women weren’t the only thing on the menu. They made for a delightful sidebar.  Both Luna and Jacqueline did a good job getting Sable over, especially Jacqueline, for it’s far better to watch two beautiful women who can wrestle than it is watching two beautiful women simply tossing and tumbling.

The storyline now was between the two women. They met in a bikini contest in July at the Fully Loaded PPV.  Sable showed up wearing only impressions of hands painted on her exposed breasts, but still won the contest.  However, the next night on RAW , Vince McMahon reversed the results because Sable was not actually wearing a bikini. Then, at SummerSlam, Sable and mystery partner Edge defeated Mero and Jacqueline in a mixed tag match.

The popularity of both Sable and Jacqueline after this match led to McMahon reinstating the Women’s Title. He realized he had it wrong before. Ability was out – T & A was what was selling; and it gave him a chance to further push the envelope in terms of outrageousness. On the September 21, 1998, episode of RAW,  Jacqueline won the reinstated title when Mero distracted Sable.  On November 15, 1998, at the Survivor Series PPV, Sable won the belt after powerbombing both Marc and Jacqueline. Sable then worked an angle where she was forced to be subservient to Vince and Shane McMahon, but the angle was dropped because of the momentum of the Women’s Title.

This was also a turning point in the booking philosophy of the WWF. Before, the women were segregated from the men in terms of angles. Storylines revolved around the men; there was an occasional woman’s match to break the monotony. Now, the women were integrated into the storylines.

Also, the definition of “woman wrestler” was changed. Before, it was ability; now it was looks. Takako Inoue was recommended to the WWF, but she let it be known that she was primarily a wrestler before anything else. Vince saw a potential headache coming and turned her down.

.

.

In 1999 a new angle began to play out. Sable was constantly approached at ringside by a woman who kept giving her a yellow rose. Then, Sable was attacked by a masked wrestler called “The Spider Lady,” later revealed to be Luna Vachon. Sable defeated Luna in a Strap match at the Royal Rumble after an assist from her “fan.” (Terri “Tori” Poch). After the Royal Rumble, Sable became the cover girl for the April, 1999, issue of Playboy, which was one of the biggest selling issues in the magazine’s history.  After the release of the magazine, Sable “went Hollywood,” constantly berating her loyal fan, Tori, and acting as if the world revolved around her. She would rarely defend her title, and ended up feuding with both Luna and Tori. The feud with Tori resulted in a match at WrestleMania XV, which also saw Nicole Bass debut as Sable’s bodyguard, helping Sable win the match.

Sable also added a new word into the wrestling lexicon when she proclaimed herself “the diva of the WWF” during an episode of Raw. From now on, all women wrestlers and managers in the WWF were referred to as divas. As to the term “diva,” it is used here in its negative meaning: a star that is arrogant, difficult to work with, fussy, demanding and who constantly seeks the spotlight.

Sable lived up to that definition, both in and out of the ring. In the ring, she made her new bodyguard, Nicole Bass, handle all the dirty work while she continued to hold the title. On May 10, 1999, however, Sable took on newcomer Debra (Debra McMichael, late of WCW) in an Evening Gown Match. Sable tore off Debra’s dress, which under normal rules, made her the winner. But WWF Commissioner Shawn Michaels decreed that the first diva to lose her dress during the match was the winner. Seems Sable and WWF Management had been having problems over her contract and duties, which is why the double-cross was put in.

Miffed at the sudden political downswing, Sable quit the WWF in June, then filed a $110 million lawsuit against her former employer, claiming sexual harassment and unsafe working conditions. The WWF countersued for breach of contract and over control of the handle “Sable.” Mero lowered the amount of her claim and an out-of-court settlement was reached in August, 1999. Under the stipulations, Rena Mero had to use her real name when she appeared on the September, 1999, cover of Playboy. (The first woman to have two covers in the history of Playboy.)  That summer she also made an on-camera appearance as an audience member on WCW’s Nitro, but that was about as far as any involvement with WCW went.

Vince was far less flustered by her walkout than when Debbie Miceli had walked. He had already staffed a roster of divas, ensuring that the show would, indeed, go on. Not only did he add Tori, but also Ivory (Lisa Moretti, formerly of GLOW), Marlena (Terri Boatwright Runnels), Debra, and Chyna (Joan Laurer) to the mix.

Ivory, Marlena and Chyna started as valet/managers, though Chyna was listed more as a “bodyguard” for DeGeneration X. Fabulous Moolah and Mae Young were also brought back, but this time as comic relief rather than serious wrestlers.

.

.

The role Sable left was filled by the arrival of Debra (Debra Gale Marshall). She was the same sort of plastic blonde as Sable, but proved to be less trouble. Born March 2, 1960, and raised in Alabama, Debra was a cheerleader and on the track team in high school. She attended the Lee Strasberg Theater Institute in New York and also served as a flight attendant before signing with WCW along with her husband, Steve “Mongo” McMichael, in 1996.
Her original role in WCW was as one of many women who stood on the entrance ramp and applauded as Hulk Hogan and Randy Savage entered the ring. Then, her first angle: Ric Flair hit on her, and she threw a drink in his face. This caused her husband to demand a match with Flair, which took place at the Great American Bash in 1996. Mongo and partner Kevin Greene were facing Flair and Arn Anderson. During in the match, Woman & Elizabeth chased Debra McMichael and Terri Greene backstage. Debra came back to ringside with a metal brief case that she handed to Mongo. Inside was a Four Horsemen T-shirt and a sum of money. Mongo and Debra then turned on Greene, took the money and left Flair and Anderson as the winners. Chris Benoit then appeared and he and Mongo helped re-form the Four Horsemen.

Later that year, Jeff Jarrett arrived in WCW and expressed a desire to join the Horsemen. He won the approval of Ric Flair and Debra, much to the chagrin of the other Horsemen, especially Mongo. Debra helped Jarrett defeat Mongo to gain membership by forcing Mongo to team with him and then she and Jarrett turned on Mongo. Becoming a manager, Debra managed the short-lived stable of  Eddie Guerrero, Dean Malenko, Bill Goldberg, and Alex Wright, which disbanded when Debra left WCW and divorced Mongo in 1998.

When Jarrett rejoined the WWF in 1998, Debra rejoined him, playing the part of a shrewd businesswoman, and helping Jarrett win matches through her interference. After that November’s Survivor Series, Jarrett began feuding  with Goldust. A match was set for December at the  In Your House: Rock Bottom PPV. It was announced as a “Striptease match”: if Jarrett won, Goldust would have to strip naked, but if Goldust won, it would be Debra that stripped naked. In the weeks leading up to the match, Debra flashed Goldust in order to distract him and cost him matches. At the PPV, Debra skulled Goldust with Jarrett’s guitar, giving Jarrett the win. But WWF Commissioner Shawn Michaels ruled that Jarrett was disqualified due to Debra’s interference and it was Debra that had to strip. Hesitant at first, she warmed up the crowd, stripping down to her bra and thong. Before she could unhook her bra, however, The Blue Blazer entered and covered her up. From then on in every Jeff Jarrett match, Debra stripped down to her bra in order to distract opponents.

.

.

She was put into the Diva mix in February, feuding with Ivory. It began a series of catfights, but soon escalated to wrestling matches. She was helped in her feud by Jarrett and Owen Hart, and also by the PMS (Pretty Mean Sisters -  Terri Runnels and Jacqueline Moore). On May 10, Debra defeated Sable in an Evening Gown match and won the Women’s Championship. During her reign,title defenses were rare, as she concentrated on managing duties. She lost the Women’s Title to Ivory on June 14, due to interference from Nicole Bass, who choked her out so Ivory could get the pin.

Debra continued as Jarrett’s manager, but Jarrett began mistreating her and blaming her for every match he lost. When Jarrett and D’Lo Brown met at SummerSlam, Debra was in Brown’s corner. The match saw Brown’s former tag team partner, Mark Henry, and Debra both turning on him, with the result being that Jarrett won both the European and Intercontinental Championships. The following night, Jarrett gave the European Title to Henry and gave Debra an assistant in the form of Miss Kitty. But he soon turned on Debra in favor of Miss Kitty after losing a mixed tag team bout to Stephanie McMahon and Test. After the match, Jarrett clamped  the Figure Four Leglock on Debra. Shortly after, at the Unforgiven PPV on September 26, Debra turned on Jeff Jarrett in his match against Chyna for the Intercontinental Championship. Debra smashed Jarrett’s guitar over his head and told him she was no longer his manager. Though Chyna pinned Jarrett, the referee disqualified Chyna because of Debra’s interference.

.

.

The following night on Raw, Jarrett and Tom Prichard challenged Chyna and Debra to a mixed tag match. Chyna accepted with the stipulation that if she won, she would get a rematch for the Intercontinental belt. Just as it looked like Chyna was about to lose, Debra entered the ring and pulled Jarrett off by the hair. Miss Kitty then entered and got into it with Debra as Chyna pinned Jarrett to earn her rematch at the No Mercy PPV. This also set up a hot feud between Chyna and Debra versus Jarrett and Miss Kitty.

Her appearances thereafter were sporadic; the highlight being her appearance at Survivor Series, where she participated in an 8-woman Sudden Death match with The Fabulous Moolah, Mae Young, and Tori. At the end of 1999, Debra got an offer from Playboy to appear nude but turned the offer down.

She disappeared for a while in 2000, but returned full time in the autumn of that year, as Lieutenant Commissioner to Mick Foley’s Commissioner. By this time, she had married Stone Cold Steve Austin, and the marriage was incorporated into on-screen angles. While she did not accompany Austin to the ring for his matches, she did join him for backstage segments and interviews. Her highlight in her return was an angle where she baked cookies that were terrible, but no one complained until Austin did, whereas she hit him with the cookie tray in the ring.

Her appearances grew less and less frequent over the next several moths, and, in late June 2002, when Austin walked out of WWE, Debra followed with him. Her marriage to Austin was plagued by charges of domestic abuse, and Austin divorced her in 2003. Debra auctioned off her wedding ring off on eBay with the proceeds being donated to “SafePlace”, a legal clinic for victims of domestic abuse. The ring, by the way, sold for about $34,000.

In the summer of 2007 Debra appeared in various newspapers and news programs, along to discuss the Chris Benoit double murder and suicide; revealing that steroids and drugs caused Austin to hit her. She also revealed that WWE had a “code of silence”: she was not allowed to reveal the truth about her marriage because it would cost the company millions, being that Austin was one of its biggest stars. Debra said her reasons for talking about the situation now was because of the depression the ordeal had put her through.

.

.

Lisa Mary Moretti, better known to WWE fans as Ivory, was was one of the original cast members of GLOW. Passing her audition, she trained under Mando Guerrero and made her GLOW debut in 1986 as Tina Ferrari. She teamed with Ashley Cartier as “T and A”, and won the GLOW Tag Team Championship.  She later defeated Colonel Ninotchka (Lori Weathers) to win the vacant GLOW Championship, reigning for 17 episodes before dropping it back to Ninotchka.

After GLOW’s founder, David McLane, left the promotion, Moretti joined him in the  newly formed Powerful Women of Wrestling promotion, where she wrestled under the ring names Nina and Tina Moretti. She won the POWW Championship twice and remained with the organization until it went bankrupt.

She remained out of wrestling until 1999, when she signed with the WWF. Her first role in the WWF was as one of The Godfather’s anonymous “Hos.” But soon she was introduced to WWF fans as Ivory, Mark Henry’s new love interest (after he had repeatedly been turned down by Chyna). She managed the team of Mark Henry and D’Lo Brown and  assisted them in their feud with Jeff Jarrett and Owen Hart. This led to several confrontations between Moretti and Jarrett’s manager, Debra.  Moretti made her in-ring debut on the February 15th edition of RAW, where she and Brown went to a no contest with Jarrett and Debra. Moretti then defeated Debra by DQ in a singles match on the March 1st edition of RAW, when she was attacked the The Pretty Mean Sisters (PMS). She then feuded with P.M.S. and, at WrestleMania XV on March 28, Ivory accompanied D’Lo Brown and Test to the ring for their match with  World Tag Team Champions Jarrett and Hart. Jarrett and Hart retained their titles after P.M.S. and Debra interfered.

Ivory severed her ties with Brown and Henry and began to challenge for the WWF Women’s Championship, which she won on June 14 by defeating Debra with the assistance of Nicole Bass. Moretti held the title for the next few months, defeating challengers Tori and Luna Vachon. She dropped the belt to the Fabulous Moolah on October 17, 1999, at the No Mercy PPV, and defeated Moolah in a rematch on the October 25th  RAW. She lost the title to Miss Kitty (Stacy Lawler) in a “Four Way Swimming Pool Evening Gown Match” on December 12 at the Armageddon PPV. They met two weeks later on SmackDown! in an “Anything Goes Match,” but Ivory lost when Chyna interfered, giving Ivory the Pedigree and Miss Kitty the win.

.

.

After this match, Ivory’s character became more conservative, calling those who enjoyed such risqué matches “perverts”. At the Royal Rumble (January 23, 2000), she reluctantly took part in a “Miss Royal Rumble” swimsuit contest, which was won by Mae Young. She unsuccessfully challenged Jacqueline for the Women’s Championship throughout the first few months 2000, and even wrestled Crash Holly for the Hardcore Title on the March 23rd edition of SmackDown!.

After a few months absence, Ivory returned to WWE in late October dressed most modestly with a tight hair bun and glasses as a member of the conservative “Right to Censor” faction. She quickly began a feud with Women’s Champion Lita, and on SmackDown! (October 31), won the Women’s Championship by defeating Lita, Jacqueline, and Trish Stratus in a “Fatal Four-Way Match.”

Chyna’s posing for Playboy in late 2000 angered Right To Censor, and on RAW (December 11), Moretti and Val Venis teamed for a piledriver to Chyna; the angle being that Chyna injured her neck. Chyna then challenged Ivory for the Women’s Championship at the Royal Rumble on (January 21, 2001), but lost when Ivory pinned her and appeared to reinjure her neck. The feud culminated in another title bout at WrestleMania XVII (April 1) with  Chyna squashing Ivory in a brief match. “Right to Censor” disbanded shortly thereafter.

.

.

Moretti returned to WWE in August and worked various angles until early 2002, when she served as a trainer in the second series of Tough Enough. To get the women’s winner, Linda Miles, over, Moretti briefly feuded with her until leaving WWE television to tour promoting house shows. She was “traded” from Smackdown! to RAW and spent the rest of 2002 teaming with Victoria and feuding with Trish Stratus.

In 2003, Ivory wrestled occasionally as a face, challenging for the Women’s Championship several times, and  served as a trainer on the third season of Tough Enough. In early 2004, she spent nine weeks working as a trainer for Ohio Valley Wrestling, training future divas. In May 2004, she began hosting WWE Experience, a weekly television show recapping events from RAW and SmackDown!. In  July 2005, Moretti’s was informed that her contract would not be renewed.

After WWE, Moretti worked in the landscaping industry, and wrestled on the independent circuit (as Lisa Moretti; WWE had trademarked “Ivory”). On April 21, 2006, in Surrey, British Columbia, Moretti defeated Rebecca Knox for the SuperGirls Championship and later lost the title to Nattie Neidhart on October 8, in Sunnyvale, California.

Sable, meanwhile, kept busy in her time away from the WWE, by releasing her autobiography, Undefeated, and a comic book, The 10th Muse, starring herself as a super hero. In November, 2001, she made two appearances as the on-camera “CEO” of the newly formed XWF, but her role went no further.

.

.

Mero returned to the WWF (now known as World Wrestling Entertainment) on the April 3, 2003, episode of SmackDown, once again as the heel Sable, spending several months in an angle with Torrie Wilson (who was the new Playboy cover girl). Sable pretended to strike up a friendship with Torrie.  It culminated when, during a tag match, she left the Torrie on her own. This led to a challenge for a bikini contest at  the Judgment Day PPV. When Sable received more applause, Torrie removed more of her clothing, with Special Guest Judge Tazz declaring Torrie the winner. After the match, Sable threw a hissy fit with Tazz, and dumped water on him during the episode of SmackDown!

.

.

Sable then began a feud with Stephanie McMahon in an angle where she was Vince McMahon’s mistress.  Sable was appointed as Stephanie McMahon’s personal assistant, much to Stephanie’s disdain, which led to several altercations, including a food fight, a parking lot brawl, and a match where Sable bashed a clipboard over Stephanie’s head. At the Vengeance PPV, Sable defeated Stephanie after her new ally, A-Train, interfered in the match. At SummerSlam, Sable accompanied A-Train, who lost to The Undertaker. Afterward, The Undertaker held Sable so that Stephanie could spear her. After SummerSlam, Mr. McMahon and Sable plotted on getting rid of Stephanie for good. This led to the famous “I Quit” match at No Mercy between Vince and his daughter. During the match Sable handed Vince the lead pipe that he used to choke out Stephanie for the win.

Sable changed to a face when she appeared on the cover of Playboy with fellow diva Torrie Wilson (the first WWE Divas to pose in Playboy together). To hype the release of the cover, the two feuded with Stacy Keibler and Miss Jackie from RAW. The culmination was an “Inter promotional Tag Team Evening Gown Match” at WrestleMania XX. However, the participants began the match in their underwear (rumored because Sable had allegedly suffered damage to her breast).  Sable and Wilson won the match.

Shortly after, Sable turned on Torrie, which led to a showdown at The Great American Bash, which Sable won. In August, 2004, WWE’s official website announced that Rena Mero and WWE had parted ways, supposedly due to her desire to spend more time with her family. However, she was officially divorced from Marc Mero in 2004, shortly after which she began dating Brock Lesnar, whom she married in 2006. She now spends her retirement helping her husband around the house.

NEXT: Two women who helped put  the Diva’s on the map. One’s role was overblown while the other was overlooked, but contributed far more.

– The Phantom of the Ring

You can write to the Phantom care of Karen Belcher

kabelchr@verizon.net

Name (required)

Mail (will not be published) (required)

Website